NEWS / EVENTS ABOUT PHLIP >>> POEMS & STORIES BOOKS & CDS VIDEOS REVIEWS MODEL CONTACT Friend me on FACEBOOK Contents Perhaps I Should Breathe Now Exhausted Deep in the Night Shift and Return > BACK TO POEMS & STORIES poems & stories Breathe Now Perhaps I Should Breathe Now By Phlip Arima the water i am floating in is still it and i are the same temperature the ceiling is only a few breaths away there is an indefinite possibility i might start to think the difficulty is deciding on a suitable subject schools have bars guarding their windows cameras look through titanium-infused atmospheric disturbances the music on the radio is hypnotic repetition names and numbers are always interchangeable sex is a risk i constantly take holding the genitalia of the big boys on the block phosphorus death lights the sky a socialist framework with a capitalistic attitude speak with eyes protected hide underneath over-stuffed pillows in the commercials all the women have double- jointed pelvises tender hands leave marks in desiccated flesh metal detectors line the doorways of classrooms the today in my mind has no external expression a chimpanzee without hair tells how it once was a light goes out a television turns on herb gardens in cities produce flavourless leaves the tofu i consume is mostly synthetic i open my eyes as far as they will go the muscles in my forehead spasmodically quiver i imagine they communicate with another dimension something that lives there taps into my thoughts perhaps i should breathe now every number contains a gig of information pharmacologically- hyped clones have replaced thinking people lingerie is made in every colour the ceiling is smooth impersonal opaque a bubble is trapped in the small of my back it's like a pet gerbil that does not squeak doesn't run in a wheel doesn't eat or excrete to give it value i must find it a name let the white collars stay stiff let the riot-cops shoot let the rope binding my elbows to my knees tighten like a snake constricting prey a kitten purrs all advertisements promise relief from some pain moving my toes creates tiny waves they bounce off the walls and return to their start they don't make much noise don't have any colour they stop being as simply as they became the music on the radio is saturated static these are my papers they show my infection within tolerable limits ten minutes alone is all we need knowing your name would be a quaint touch perhaps i should breathe now uranium fallout stealth if i open my mouth the water will get in the sound in my throat will be trapped forever the hope that i harbour will turn a dark green the bubble moves the ceiling shifts hair from my body sinks through the water i want to roll over and watch it swirl it might make a pattern that has some meaning be subject for thought reveal a name suitable for a gerbil value is measured in american dollars teachers click televisions to blatant commercial thinly fleshed faces look up at the night satellites network with one another the today in my mind has no external expression all numbers succumb to one and zero a group of children torture the kitten bloodstained lingerie floats near my hand refugees eat photographs of homes they once loved the men in the commercials all use the same face perhaps i should breathe now kick and scratch and screech at the water tighten my fingers into threatening fists stand up in this box even if it means i crack my head outside the window gunships circle inside my mouth my teeth are aching my tongue is swelling the music on the radio is beat without rhythm all the pillows are crushed flat from years of abuse space stations in the sky represent progress the children giggle the water cools pressure in my ears force my eyes to shut my toes are numb with paralysis i am constipated and aroused i am hungry and frightened i am beginning to see the aura of all existence hope turning green i want to believe the promises are real perhaps i should breathe now the bubble has imploded my infection increases other dimensions are beyond my reality the numbers on my plate taste the same as poster paste the today in my mind has no external expression i have lost your name the kitten is dead commercials are remastered with digital sound deep in my bowels tofu turns sour there is an indefinite possibility i might start to think. Exhausted By Phlip Arima Exhausted body lit red on bed wire reinforcements beneath cheap lace shapeless anxiety dancing with eyes shut leather laces running up waxed legs the stale scent of desire trapped in the sheets whispered words bouncing back unheard a plant on the floor reaching for the window a majority rule without consideration for the individual sour with sweat a dollar buys a pound for not more than an hour a light grows dim a pen runs dry a percentage is paid for effective service she is called incredible she is promised a palace she is left alone without a hug one shadow turns to three ..... turns to infinity the mirror on the ceiling constantly distorts image does not reflect the thought the sound of groans echo back from other rooms every act is a trial ..... the victim forever found guilty somewhere there is a memory that lifts and liberates a child once laughed sitting on daddy's lap in a box near the bed is an award for good spelling at dawn there will be a short reprieve. Deep in the Night By Phlip Arima Pre-dawn drizzle on a tattooed soul Pre-dawn drizzle on a tattooed soul expectation amputated from faith inside a skin less innocent than old waiting for the angels ..... the angels ..... the angels waiting for the angels to fall from the sky. Rapture and thrust ..... high-strung and hard little things dying-moaning in the crowd the heart seldom beats in rhythm with wisdom dreams like serpents twist with thought the nature of fire is to always consume. High-strung and hard ..... high-strung and hard inhale the fantastic-cough and choke teeth can be broken chewing on hope in spiritual chaos angels die feel the storm slash through the crowd. Know that the gut ..... know that the gut ..... know that the gut can seldom feel just ... just ... just ... just ... just ... just rapture and thrust ..... high-strung and hard inside a skin less innocent than old inarticulate caresses cerebral anxiety listen to the voice of an urban world: Lonely concrete electric light hustle-hustle hustle-hustle hustle-hustle hustle of a squeegee against cold glass something for throat ..... something for vein something for under pulsating tongue. Expectation amputated from faith rapture and thrust ..... rapture and thrust ideals are anchors slow to rust potential is myth-future flux beat in rhythm ..... dawn burns the crowd dawn burns the crowd. Shift and Return By Phlip Arima if is the first word I learned to say I read my horoscope everyday this lottery ticket is going to win I can drink more than I could at ten the walls are thick-all mirrors lie I walk like a robot-I talk with machines all the virtues a few select vices the floor is long-the ceiling is wide under my hat is synthetic hair mass advertising shapes my desire it looked good in the window ..... it's guaranteed tell me a story I'll hear what I want each ache can be medicated ..... if funds are available I pick out the breasts I'm going to get control-alt-delete I once saw a book with pages and ink my phone has an apt for every forecast this food was grown with twenty-two steroids these condoms taste like passion fruit a game of bingo begins every hour I had ice cream for breakfast ..... cake for lunch nothing on the menu looks right for dinner I am listening for a sonic boom hit the return shift and repeat tell me a story I'll pretend to listen the sign on the door says this way out drugs are cheaper than buying new nerves I deposit my children in private schools these twenty-dollar coins are made of aluminum it looked good in the on the mannequin ..... it's guaranteed I beat up a machine at queen and bay the walls get thicker-the floor gets shorter plastic plants last longer than live ones I got my teeth at a second-hand shop the shift key on the wall is smooth and faded this lottery ticket is going to win the contacts I wear make mirrors look better I picked out the penis I'm going to get overwhelming information today is the beginning of the end of my life I saw a religion that just might work the forecast for tomorrow has not been decided a slightly used condom is stuck in my throat everyone says they like my hoarse voice smoking a cigarette makes me a rebel ten fewer pounds-I'll look intelligent control-alt-delete my nerves are louder in lightless rooms I consider a loft in an underground building all the virtues ..... a few select vices I sell my body for more than it's worth it looked good on the computer ..... it's guaranteed tell me a story I'll repeat it better the walls get thicker-the ceiling narrows if is the first ..... if is the first ..... if is the first word ..... I learned to say I read my horoscope ..... everyday a low pressure front slowly moves through the region get the eyes right-see in fluorescent overwhelming information I tint my lashes to match my nails sexualize the moment to change its value hit the return shift and repeat wind rising ..... stains on my underwear I blindly scrub a thirty-second spot swallow a list of affirmations all the virtues-a few select vices contaminated rain feared and expected key on the wall-smooth and faded I paint my lips thick ..... the sun is turned off the screen refines apathetic disposition electronic relaxation increases the tension a low pressure front slowly moves through the region stiletto heels dogmatically march acid rain pits aluminum siding vinyl foundation perfects my face the creatures with property dig themselves in I lie in a puddle denying the dark count the threads in a designer suit sexualize the moment ..... if funds are available I use extra-strength generic deodorant photocopy menus without permission listen for a sonic boom control-alt-delete fact verification is a futile task a professional manicure would make me feel safe I knot my tie straight ..... rain to sleet a low pressure front slowly moves through the region personal power is a commodity ..... I cannot afford the study of ethics ..... is considered immoral the hungry forget it is crucial to hunt overwhelming information I polish my teeth ..... the dark gets denser a thin sheet of ice covers the puddle I add more conditioner to my hair if is the first word I learned to say I read my horoscope everyday each ache can be medicated to change its value all the virtues ..... a few select vices the street is only a few steps away another credit card should-could arrive today hit the return shift and repeat each and every one of us is the enemy I saw my father the mirror tension describes a complex pattern sickness at the edge of each eye my phone says the door will no longer open tell me a religion ..... I will believe the parts I hear control-alt-delete ..... I so want to sleep this lottery ticket is going to win the floor is gone-the puddle solid I download all the colourful catalogues key on the wall ..... overwhelming information nerves as loud as a sonic boom. the ceiling is only a few breaths away All content © 2011 Phlip Arima